Mark Dubowitz in the Media

New Iran Sanctions Could Bring Unintended Blowback

"You want to move the market so that you have a smaller number of buyers" of Iranian oil, added Mark Dubowitz, director of the Iran Energy Project at the Foundation for Defence of Democracies, a Washington think tank that provides research for Congressional staffers crafting sanctions strategy against Iran.

"You want to remove the 'white-hatted' [reputable Western] buyers and ruthlessly drive the price down" that Iran receives from remaining buyers, he said.

Dubowitz said that rather than a blanket ban on dealings with the Iranian Central Bank, he would prefer barring certain transactions that he claimed facilitate the Iranian nuclear programme and support for terrorism, allow Iran to sell energy bonds and circumvent existing sanctions on Iranian banks. He called the Senate push the beginning of a "negotiation" with the Obama administration on further sanctions against Iran.